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Inequality of outcomes vs. inequality of opportunities in a developing country. An exploratory analysis for Chile

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Author Info
Javier Núñez
Andrea Tartakowsky

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Abstract

We apply a variation of Bourguignon, Meléndez and Ferreira (2005) methodology to examine the extent to which income inequality is associated with the inequality of observed exogenous circumstances of origin that determine individuals’ “opportunities” to pursue their chosen life plans. We find that equalizing a set of observed circumstances of origin across individuals such as parents’ schooling, parents’s stability of employment, father’s age, household size and growing in a single vs a bi-parental household reduces income inequality, but in a small margin, in the range of 8 to 13 points of the Gini coefficient, about a 15-20 per cent drop. These results are similar to those obtained by Bourguignon et al. (2005) for Brazil, although the dataset and the set of observed circumstances are partially different. These results suggest that a significant part of income inequality may be associated with unobserved heterogeneity across individuals unrelated to circumstances of origin, such as preferences, eff

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File URL: http://econ.uchile.cl/public/Archivos/pub/2ec9ab9b-e042-428a-9c8e-1f2b7a1d233c.pdf
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Publisher Info
Article provided by University of Chile, Department of Economics in its journal Estudios de Economia.

Volume (Year): 34 (2007)
Issue (Month): 2 Year 2007 (December)
Pages: 185-202
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Handle: RePEc:udc:esteco:v:34:y:2007:i:2:p:185-202

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Web page: http://www.econ.uchile.cl/
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Related research
Keywords: Income inequality; equality of opportunities.;

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
D31 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Personal Income and Wealth Distribution
D63 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement

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  1. Francois Bourguignon & Francisco H.B. Ferreira & Marta Menéndez, 2005. "Inequality of Opportunity in Brazil," Ibero America Institute for Econ. Research (IAI) Discussion Papers 133, Ibero-America Institute for Economic Research. [Downloadable!]
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  2. Jere R. Behrman & Mark R. Rosenzweig, 2004. "Returns to Birthweight," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 86(2), pages 586-601, 06. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  3. Alesina, Alberto & Di Tella, Rafael & MacCulloch, Robert, 2004. "Inequality and happiness: are Europeans and Americans different?," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(9-10), pages 2009-2042, August. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  4. Javier Núnez & Roberto Gutiérrez, 2004. "Class discrimination and meritocracy in the labor market: evidence from Chile," Estudios de Economia, University of Chile, Department of Economics, vol. 31(2 Year 20), pages 113-132, December. [Downloadable!]
  5. Jere R. Behrman & Mark R. Rosenzweig, 2002. "Does Increasing Women's Schooling Raise the Schooling of the Next Generation?," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 92(1), pages 323-334, March. [Downloadable!]
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